Slave of the Underworld
by Kanute
Summary: Osiris, favored among the gods, and Pharaoh over all the lands of Egypt, has cursed his own son Anubis to the Underworld. Betrayed and an outcast, Anubis has been fighting to return to the lands of Egypt, what happens when he does is a mystery even to the gods.
1. Chapter I

_Prologue_

* * *

Amunet, Seeress of the gods — That's what they called her. Even the mighty Ra respected her powers.

She stood by the entrance to a cave, high up on the cliffside where the ocean waves could not reach it, though they crashed a hundred feet into the air clawing at the jagged rock.

Her eyes, as white as spiders webs, rolled back into her head when the prophecy came upon her. She held out her beautiful smooth pale arms, unadorned by the gems and gold bands her status merited — her slender form was draped in torn black silks, their frayed edges swaying back and forth to the rhythm of her chant.

 _"Darkness and pain, darkness and pain… darkness and pain."_ She was muttering to the god that stood before her, an emerald-eyed god who wore the crown of both upper and lower Egypt upon his head.

The Seeress took in a rasping wheezing breath, her stretched out arms now shaking violently — she began to speak in a deep hollow voice.

 _"Nephthys' child shall be your doom. The child within her is cursed, cursed with the powers of death._

 _The gods of Egypt shall tremble at his coming._

 _Darkness and pain surround the beast, fear and sorrow follow him wherever he goes._

 _Blood of your Blood is doomed to slay you._

 _The woman seeks to protect the monster, She will bring the beast back to the lands of Egypt._

 _Into your home, unbidden, the God-Slayer shall come!"_

The Seeress lowered her arms, her breathing slowed, and her lovely ghost-like eyes now looked upon the god before her with pity — she was truly beautiful, her black hair fell loosely about her shoulders onto her pale skin, her whole body was the color of pure ivory, and she had always a gentle glow to her, like the haze surrounding a full moon.

Again, she spoke to the emerald-eyed god that stood before her.

"Your own blood shall kill you, Osiris, if you do not choose carefully how you act." She said, her voice no longer hollow, but instead filled with tones of sorrow.

"Tell me, Amunet, how can I avoid this terrible fate?" Osiris pleaded, but he knew she could not tell him; even the Seeress of the gods could not see all the possible outcomes of a prophecy.

"I can only warn you." She said, "Prophecies can be avoided, but that rarely comes without great cost. Far more than the fate of this child rests in your hands now, Osiris."

* * *

The Seeress's words echoed through Osiris' mind as he paced the white-marble floors of his palace. _"The child within her is cursed…"_

He looked at his beautiful sister, Nephthys, whose signs of the infant-god within her womb were already becoming visible.

He was torn, the only thing Osiris loved more than himself was his beautiful sister, but he could not allow this child to fulfill its terrible destiny…

Nephthys was looking at him pleadingly with those drippingly heart-melting eyes, her hands protectively resting on her exposed abdomen.

" _Blood of your Blood is doomed to slay you."_ For once Osiris felt something akin to fear.

His eyes met her gaze, he spoke with a calm resolution that chilled her heart to the core.

"You and the child will leave the land of Egypt, and never return." He said.

Nephthys was shaking her head, the glass ornaments in her dark hair clacking against one another softly, tears were threatening to spill.

"Osiris, please!" she said, "He is your _son,_ to grow up in the desert lands is not a life for a child!"

"The boy shall not set one foot into my kingdom or, _by the light of Ra_ , he shall be doomed to a fate far worse than death!" He yelled at the cowering pregnant woman.

Nephthys fell to her knees, clapping a jewel bedecked hand to her perfect mouth, tears streaming from those eyes as blue as the Nile.

"Osiris, my love, please do not do this terrible thing!" She sobbed through her hand.

"An oath has been made, Nephthys. Now leave before I call the palace guards." He said, turning away from his heartbroken sister, she began to wail, "… Osiris, I beg you —"

"GET OUT!"

" _The woman seeks to protect the monster… She will bring the beast back to the lands of Egypt."_

He saw the woman he loved flee before his wrath — Osiris fell to his knees, placing both hands over his face, he let out a heart-broken yell of agony.

 _"Prophecies can be avoided, but that rarely comes without great cost."_ The Seeress had told him.

He was an immortal, and yet fate, it seemed, deemed him worthy of death.

Sending Nephthys out of the lands of Egypt would not prevent the child from returning — He would need to do far more than that if he wished to outlive this prophecy.

* * *

 _Chapter I_

 _Head of the Jackal_

* * *

 _"I'm the one who found you. When you were wandering aimlessly in the desert I was the one who took you in, gave you a name, gave you purpose — I own you Hathor."_

These were the words that haunted her. Those words rushed through her thoughts as she gazed intently at the small object in her hand; it appeared to be an amulet of some kind, a gold disk dangling from a chain rested in her palm. Her molten eyes could barely distinguish the shape of a jackal, almost worn away completely by the hands of time. She sensed it was a very powerful object.

Hathor stood beside a great river that spilled over the edge of a lush cliffside; the mists rising from the waterfall dampened her hair, turning it from a bright ruby-red to a much deeper shade, like wine. It was her eyes, however, that made her stand out as a goddess — they were the purest shade of gold, as if the color itself was a solid object, a living metal that burned with a life of its own. They had a captivating way of glowing when she was overcome with emotion.

Hathor's eyes glowed now as she stared intently at the pendant; it was her desire for power that made her search it so, seeking for a way to unlock its hidden powers.

She whispered the name under her breath — _"Anubis."_

A shiver ran up her exposed spine. Perhaps she was just imagining things, but she could have sworn the pendant had grown cold as ice in that moment.

She traced the faint design with her fingernail before slipping the chain over her neck, letting the pendant slide down the front of her dress next to her skin and out of view.

Hathor flicked her blood red hair from beneath the chain, giving her seductive mane a shake, freeing the damp strands that clung to her bare back. She turned and made her way down the path into Osiris' garden.

It was more of a well groomed jungle, perhaps, than a garden, considering its vast expanse; but than again, one could hardly expect anything less from the God of Agriculture.

She smiled when she thought of that powerful god. The mighty Osiris allowed her to live in his palace and stroll through his gardens, the most beautiful in all the lands of Egypt; this was a favor not lightly bestowed. She bit her lip, her bright eyes flickering up from the ground for a moment — his son Horus had a small part to play in the favors Osiris bestowed upon her.

Hathor may have been one of the youngest of the immortals, but she was rapidly becoming one of the more respected and rightly feared. Understanding how to manipulate another being, god or mortal, was a skill which made even the mighty Osiris wary of her. But his son, Horus, was always more reckless than his father — everyone knew that. It was a weakness that this bright goddess did not hesitate to exploit.

Hathor's bare feet made no sound as she walked down the earthen path — she paused her movement when a great shadow passed over her. Her flame-red hair was jerked behind her in a liquid movement as the god's beating wings blew torrents of wind down upon her. She looked up to see the golden wings of Horus beating heavily against the clear blue sky.

"Glorious glorious Horus!" She sang in a playful tone as the handsome god landed before her, transforming fluidly into his human form. The golden wings were lovely, but this was better, she thought, before giving him her most pearly white smile.

She had little need of using her magical powers of persuasion with a smile like that, but the magic certainly came in handy on the rare occasions her heart-melting smile didn't get her what she wanted.

"You may be the Goddess of Love and Joy, but even you don't toss around smiles like that just because you're happy to see me." Said Horus. His voice was smooth, rich and rumbly — just as a god's should be. "Tell me, Hathor, what is it you seek this time?" He asked.

The handsome god clearly wasn't irritated by the fact she was so obviously going to try and pry information out of him. He turned and walked with her as she continued her way down the path.

"Tell me of Anubis." She said. Her voluptuously silken voice had spoiled her into the notion that she could ask for anything and it would be given her, which, unfortunately, most of the time was true. Horus visibly tensed at her demand — it didn't matter how sweet her voice may be, this was not a topic anyone in Egypt, god or mortal, discussed without great caution.

"Why do you ask this of me, Hathor?" He said. "My father has expressly made clear his wish that none speak of that horrible beast. Do you perhaps forget the great favor your king has shown you?"

Hathor swung around in front of him, her hands gently touching his forearms to halt his walk, she left them there as she looked up into his face. He stood a full head taller than her, and his ice-blue eyes glanced down to meet with her deep gold ones as she spoke.

"I do not ask out of any disrespect to the mighty Osiris," She said, "For, as you know, my respect for him rests above all others. It is out of fear for my own safety that I ask… " Her eyes flickered away from his the moment she spied the change in his expression, she turned her head, and, looking down, began to pull her hands away from him.

Hathor felt a strong yet gentle hand grab her arm, forcing her to look back at him.

"Your safety?" He asked, "What need have you to fear the creatures of the Underworld?" His eyes, so deep and ancient, searched her comparatively young ones for any trace of something being amiss. Hathor feigned shyness as she spoke a little more softly, "It pains me to admit it, but there is still so much I do not fully understand about death and immortality… I fear that which I do not know."

The expression on Horus' face softened slightly. Letting go of her arm, he gestured her over to a wonderfully carved bench that sat in the shade. A cool breeze pulled alluringly at Hathor's crimson tresses, whipping it around her face in a most pleasing way.

"It is easy for one to forget that your knowledge might still be lacking in some respects." Said Horus, resisting the urge to brush the hair out of Hathor's face. "Tell me, what do you wish to know of the afterlife?"

She couldn't resist another one of those pearly white smiles.

* * *

The two immortals sat there in the shade of the palms, discussing the world that lay beneath all life and light.

As Ra's great ship tipped over into the Duat, casting night over the lands of Egypt, Hathor finally pressed the Air God for the information she sought.

"You have told me before that Anubis is respected as one of the gods, but do the mortals worship him?" She spoke with a little more caution the closer she came to her real question.

Horus shook his head, "I neither know nor care whether the mortals choose to worship the creatures of the Underworld." He said, a hint of irritation in his voice.

"It is merely out of curiosity that I ask," said Hathor, "I know that the great god Ptah created the tokens of the gods, crafted with each god's unique symbol, to be given to mortals that they might receive our guidance and protection… but were there any such tokens made for the god Anubis?" Her voice was dripping with innocence, it was disturbing how she could look one thing and yet be so utterly the opposite.

Horus gave her a strange look, perhaps he saw through her facade?

"I do not know of any such tokens having been made." There was a hint of caution in his voice now that irritated Hathor.

"But if there were any such tokens, what power would they hold?" She asked, her voice betraying slightly the sense of urgency she was beginning to feel — she didn't like not getting what she wanted.

Horus stood up, an unpleasant look of disappointment in his eyes. "I do not know what kind of dark game you are playing at, Hathor, but I will have no part in it."

Hathor stood as he turned to leave her, but she said nothing. Short of using her powers on him, there was nothing she could say to change the mind of Osiris' son once he'd made it up.

Hathor felt a pang of regret, she disliked it when Horus was upset with her — whether she admitted it to herself or not, she preferred that tall strong God of the Air over any other.

Funny that the goddess of Love, who knew everything that could be known about the heart, couldn't decide what her own feelings were.

She turned and made her way down one of the longer paths back to the palace.

* * *

The firelight, coming from the braziers and oil-lamps placed around the palace, reflected off the large swaths of sheer fabric that hung in each room, blowing gently in the cool night breeze.

Hathor's soft footsteps made a gentle patter, her lovely figure smoothly gliding through the passageways, the jewelry that hung around her neck and on her arms reflected the warm light as she passed by, giving her a shimmery appearance.

She had been walking in the garden a little longer than she had thought, most of the servants were cleaning up the remains of dinner, while the voices of a few of the gods could be heard drifting with laughter caused by wine. She didn't feel like joining them.

Hathor slipped unnoticed into her own private chambers; they were quite spacious, and of course elaborately decorated — Osiris was a most generous king.

She blew out the few lights in the room and sat down on the large bed, covered with the most valuable silks the lands of Egypt could afford, the air flowed in peacefully through the large archway leading to the balcony.

Hathor sat a moment before reaching down the front of her dress, pulling out the large disk-shaped pendant.

So Anubis had no tokens? If that wasn't what this was, than what was it? As a goddess, Hathor could sense the power residing within the amulet, yet who could have made such an item?

Surely Horus would have known if the great god Ptah had made such an object… unless it was made in secret — or in secret by one of the other gods.

She clenched her hand into a fist, squeezing the disk until her knuckles grew white — she hated secrets! At least the ones kept from her.

Opening her hand, she again traced the design that lay in the gold with her finger.

She whispered it again — _"Anubis."_

She was not mistaken this time, the amulet distinctly grew colder, and in the silence of her chambers she thought she could hear faint whispers emanating from the small disk. She shuddered.

Again placing the chain over her neck Hathor lay down on her side, she closed her eyes, her mind drifting to the lord of the Underworld.

Anubis, one of the most ancient of the gods — she was not ignorant of the knowledge and power such an ancient being would possess.

As she drifted towards sleep, her mind continued to wander; from the power the pendant could potentially give her, to how lovely the waterfall looked earlier today… to the light of Ra glancing off Horus' golden wings…

She was dreaming.


	2. Chapter II

_Chapter II_

 _Bleeding Goddess_

* * *

 _Under cover of night a dark figure travels across the perilous edges of the desert, towards Egypt — towards Osiris' kingdom._

 _In the cool shadows his dark form shifts like the sands of the desert. His only wish — a single night in the gardens of the palace. But, alas, he is unaware of the dangers that await him should he cross the ancient borders._

 _The moment his feet are upon Egyptian soil Osiris knew of his presence there. Anger, fear, and hatred, like a great ghostly plague, fill the skies with a cloud that floods the land, searching with a deathly speed for this night-shrouded trespasser._

 _The dark cloud slides through the streets like water, it penetrates the tombs of the dead, gliding across the glassy surface of the river Nile. Like a desert storm it crashed down upon the man; the voice of Osiris filled his ears, forcing him to his knees, he trembled at the voice of the god._

 _"The oath has been broken!" The voice thundered all around him. "As a thief and a jackal you have come into my gardens, desecrating the very earth you walk upon!"_

 _The dark cloud vanishes, before the man stands Osiris, Pharaoh of Egypt. "I made an oath. You knew what would await you were you ever to cross into my kingdom — An oath to Ra is not easily broken, and I intend to keep mine." The god's voice was ice. His emerald eyes shimmered a sickly green in the light of the moon._

 _The man's voice tore through the air in screams of agony as his body began contorting; his skin grew black as coal as his Osiris' curse began twisting him into the unearthly form of a jackal._

 _The poor beast looked up into the face of Osiris standing before him. The light of Ra was in the eyes of Osiris as he spoke to the wretched hound writhing on the ground beneath his feet. "I bind you, son of Nephthys, to the Underworld. A slave shall you be, eternally wandering the hollow and lightless world of Duat, where the Shade-eaters dwell."_

 _As the ground beneath him began to tremble and rip apart, the shadows of the Underworld seeping through to wrap their dark tendrils around his broken limbs, the jackal reached out his dog-like hand in one last plea to the terrible god Osiris._

 _"FATHER, MERCY!"_

Hathor sat up with a scream, she placed a hand on her chest — her heart was pounding, her clothes were damp with sweat, she was breathing quickly.

She glanced around the room, trying to assure herself it was just a bad dream… had she been muttering in her sleep?

She slipped off her bed, stepping out onto the balcony.

The cold sweat that still clung to her back and neck made her shiver in the light breeze, she placed her hands on the wide stone railing, still trying to calm her beating heart.

Stepping away from the railing she pulled angrily at the chain around her neck, yanking it off completely; she glanced down at the gold disk, now reflecting the white moonlight as it rested in the palm of her hand. It couldn't have caused the dream, could it?…

Hathor was startled by a thundering sound, a dark cloud of black sand shot up out of the floor beside her like a whirlwind, her clothes and hair twisted around her as the sand-filled wind blasted outwards.

Staggering backwards, she grabbed the stone railing for support — before her appeared a massive dark creature, partially human in form, but its skin was black and charred like coal, its head was that of a hideous dog — a jackal.

His arms were bound with gold bands, and in his hand he held a staff bearing the mark of the dead; a great cold seeped out of the hole he came from, crawling towards the goddess.

The creature went down on one knee, placing a fist over his chest. The creature spoke with a voice as deep and ancient as time itself, "You have summoned me, my lord." It said, before looking up at a shaking Hathor, she was holding onto the amulet by its chain, the gold disk dangling down by her ankles. They made eye-contact, the creature seemed in a moment to realize the situation, glancing back at the amulet, he lunged forwards — Hathor twisted around, pulling the amulet up to her chest, she felt a blast of cold hit her as he lunged forwards, his massive dark arms wrapping around her like iron.

Hathor cried out for help, in their struggle the creature grabbed the chain dangling from her hand — it broke; she still held the amulet. She threw it away from her over the balcony, she didn't know why. He still had his arms around her at the moment she threw it, the moment the disk was in the air she felt herself dropping, black sand was being sucked into the hole that she and the creature were now being swallowed by.

They fell, and were consumed entirely by darkness.

* * *

Hathor hit the ground. She felt something snap, her mouth filled with sand — it tasted like ash.

She gave a little groan as she rolled over onto her back, coughing and spitting out the sand…

She was defiantly going to have bruises.

She gave a hiss of pain as she reached her hand to touch her left arm; she could feel a very long gash running from her shoulder down to her wrist, the golden blood was sticky to the touch, it made her feel sick; she had never been hurt in her life.

Hathor sat up, her head throbbing, the only thing she could think of that could cause that cut on her arm was the creature that — suddenly she remembered where she was and how she got there.

Her heart rate skyrocketed; her eyes had already begun to adjust to the low-level light, so she cautiously turned her head to see where the creature was, silently hoping he had been thrown far away from her in their fall.

She turned her head, only to be met by the gaze of two eyes as blue as the Nile, their light illuminating the face of a jackal.

Hathor leapt to her feet with the intention of running, but almost immediately collapsed as her left leg crumpled beneath her — her ankle being badly sprained.

Tears were streaming down her lovely and now dirty face as she attempted to pull herself along with one arm. She hadn't made it very far before she could no longer move, so she lay face down in the dirt, and let out a heart-broken sob. She had never been afraid in her life, there was never anything to be afraid of, yet now everything seemed capable of hurting her.

Hathor continued to lie on the ground for some time, she had expected the demon to be upon her in an instant, especially considering her completely vulnerable position.

She slowly pulled herself back into an upright sitting position, looking back at where she'd seen those eyes.

She saw the creature hadn't moved at all, he was standing with his massive shoulders slightly slumped, his gaze fixed on the small gold chain that lay in the palm of his hand, it was the chain from the pendant.

He clenched his charred fist around the small piece of metal, slowly falling to his knees.

He remained in this despairing position until an almost inaudible gasp of pain escaped Hathor's lips, immediately followed by a much more audible gasp of fear when he sharply turned his gaze upon her.

She closed her eyes, telling herself she was a goddess; and goddesses were afraid of nothing.

Then she felt a dark and scaly claw touch her bleeding arm.

Goddesses don't cower.

Her whole body shook as she reminded herself that this creature had drawn some of her immortal blood. Perhaps she wasn't so immortal after all? Osiris always said there were things to be feared from death.

She couldn't run, her ankle wouldn't hold her weight — She could feel those massive branded arms slide around her waist and under her knees, lifting her to a height far greater than if she had been standing on her own two feet. Hathor had been lying there with her eyes closed, the creature must have thought she was unconscious, so she allowed herself to hang limply as he raised her off the ground.

Her heart was pounding so hard it made her head ache, her ears were ringing, and she had a very hard time forcing her self not to breath too heavily; if she was going to pretend to be unconscious, she would need to not hyperventilate.

Both her arms had been carefully placed over her abdomen, and the massive arm wrapped around her waist sort of cradled them, keeping her injured arm from slipping and dangling as they walked to Ra knows where — it was almost as if the creature was being careful of her injury.

Why did the creature's skin feel as if it were burned? She was pressed against its massive chest which was strangely cold, that too was odd, but also didn't explain the charred and blackened skin. Her curiosity irritated her — what use did knowing how the monster who had attacked, injured, and now carried her through the Underworld, got his skin as burned as charcoal?

She could feel its human chest pushing in and out with each of its massive breaths, its large gruesome face was close enough to hear the soft dog-like growling sound it made with each exhale. Hathor really did become unconscious now; the exhaustion, combined with the injuries she'd received eventually overwhelming her.

When Hathor opened her eyes she was lying down on her back on what felt like damp earth; she could hear the sound of running water a short ways off.

There was no grass anywhere, but at least she wasn't in that disgusting ash-sand.

She could make out a very soft light being emitted from the river, the black dirt she lay on was the same that made up the rivers banks, its bluish-grey light only just reached as far from the river bank as Hathor lay, illuminating her small figure lying in a peaceful position; her hair pooled around her head and shoulders, a few strands gently falling across her face and chest — in this light it was almost a purple color.

To her left she could just make out the edge of a very strange forrest, the trees and their leaves were black and dark grey; leaning on one of the large trees closest to her was the shadowy form of the creature who brought her here, his arms were crossed — he appeared to have been watching her.

The moment the creature noticed she was awake it stepped forward, kneeling beside her small form, not touching her, but looking into her eyes as if waiting for her to say something.

Hathor stared into the creatures liquid-blue eyes, their color shimmering like the waters of the Nile. She didn't know why, but they made her think of Horus — for the briefest of moments her mind's eye conjured up a memory of the warm Egyptian sun shining on her face, of the morning breeze shifting under the massive golden wings of Horus, of his shimmering blue eyes that looked at her in that peculiar way he had, a look that made her forget she was the goddess of love, and not a silly little mortal maiden, which is how she felt under the influence of those eyes.

The bright and warm memory soon faded away, she was brought back to the reality of the cold wet dirt she lay in. Tearing her eyes from those of the monster kneeling beside her, she looked down at her injured arm, there was a small portion of her golden blood pooled by her elbow, it had turned a bronzy-grey where it mixed with the black soil.

"A goddess." Said the creature in a voice so rich and ancient it felt like it could split the earth.

Hathor nearly leapt out of her skin from shock, she hadn't expected his long silence to be broken. It took all her will power not to scream or tremble like a river reed when she saw the creature move its large hand over her chest, with one ebony-black claw it lifted the amulet that hung from a tiny gold chain around her neck.

It was the amulet forged for her by the great god Ptah, given to her during the Ceremony of the Young Immortals. It bore the image of the Ieb, symbol of the heart.

"Even the gods bleed in my realm." He said, the thick vibrations of his rippling voice filling the air around them. "I am afraid my hands are unsuited for the task of binding your wounds, my lady." He said. As he spoke, he allowed the amulet to fall back onto her chest, opening his clawed hands as if to show the further damage they could do to her.

Hathor was taken aback at both his way of addressing her, as well as by the impression he gave of apologizing for not having bound her wounds.

She still did not speak, the creature's powerful voice echoed in her head even after he fell silent, it was entrancing.

The creature pulled away from her slightly, tearing off a strip of fabric from his black shendyt, the skirt-like kilt worn by both kings and slaves, he held the torn strip out to the frightened goddess.

"The waters from the river are clean." He said as she took the fabric he handed her, once she took it he stood, the ground beneath his feat cracked open as a portal appeared, and the creature vanished in a dark whirlwind of sand.

Hathor coughed as the ashen sands were sucked into the rapidly closing portal — it sealed completely, leaving the ground as it had been.

She was alone.

* * *

Hathor crawled the short distance between where she lay and the edge of the river bank, dipping the strip of black fabric she held into the ice-cold waters. She lay on her side, using the water from the cloth to wash her golden blood into the river, it danced in the eery light as it flowed out of view.

Once her wound was clean she bound her arm with the cloth, it stood in stark contrast against her smooth bronze skin and bright clothing. Sitting up, she slid her legs over the edge of the river bank, letting the cool water run across her feet and sprained ankle; a soft hiss of pain escaped her lips when she moved it. Hathor clamped her teeth together, she would not allow tears to flow or whimpers of pain to escape her lips — she was an immortal, those things were beneath her… but one tear did make it through, tracing its salty line down her hot face.

She was so uncomfortable; her head pounded, her skin felt hot, her arm and ankle burned, but her whole body shook violently with chills. Why had this happened to her?

Hathor replayed the events of the night… or was it day now? She'd lost track of time.

She remembered when the creature first appeared he had said, _"You have summoned me, my lord."_ It had been expecting someone other than her to be holding the amulet… _the amulet…_

That must have been why it showed up, she had been holding the amulet when she spoke the name of _Anubis_ … could that be who this monster was? Anubis, god of the Underworld?

She didn't know who else it could be, that voice, so ancient and tormented; it must be the criminal who was condemned to the realm of the Duat all those millennia ago.

She had no idea he could transport himself between the worlds, had he not been imprisoned here?

Again, she ran over the events of that night in her head:

The amulet had grown cold… the creature showed up in a vortex of that wretched ash-sand… he had mistaken her for someone else…

It wanted the amulet.

Why did it want the amulet? If Horus had truly been mistaken, and the god Ptah had indeed forged a token for the god Anubis, than why would he be so desperate to get it back? He would have no need for it — most of the gods chose to wear their tokens as she wore hers, as an amulet, a mere article of jewelry; the moment the tokens are forged, the power transfers from it to the immortal, giving them their godly powers… after that they became nothing more than a useless trinket. So why had it seemed so desperate to take the amulet from her?… and why had she not just let it?

Stupid, stupid, stupid. If she hadn't thrown away the amulet she wouldn't be in this predicament now, in the Underworld, hurt, and cold too on top of everything else.

Hathor ground her teeth together, clenching a fist around the hem of her thin golden dress.

For once in her life the goddess of love wished she was wearing something a little less revealing; it was disgustingly cold in the Underworld.

Determined not to allow her physical discomfort to fog her mind, she turned her thoughts towards escape. Surely there must be a way out of here…

She pulled her legs out of the water, sliding the thin silken fabric of her dress down to cover as much skin as possible, but it held in little to no warmth.

Tucking her knees up under her chin, she pulled her hair around to cover as much of her shoulders as it could, then wrapped her arms around her legs, tucking her face in to her knees. She sat there shivering, wet, bleeding, bruised, scared, and alone. Surely someone had noticed she was missing by now… though they would probably never guess where she was.

Hathor had been sitting in this position for quite awhile, she managed finally to drift off into a light doze, it was in this state that she managed to pass the remainder of the day — though she did not know it, the sun was setting on the surface.

She peeked up over her knees when she heard the sound of her captor's footsteps approaching through the dark forest, she felt something akin to relief when she saw his massive dark figure emerge from the shadows, at least she wasn't alone in this nightmarish limbo, left physically and metaphorically in the dark.

She wanted to stand up, it would have made her feel less like a cowering animal, but she didn't want to risk losing what small amount of warmth she had managed to retain.

The creature stood a little ways in front of her, it thrust its staff into the soft soil and crouched down, making himself closer to eye level with Hathor. Its massive blue eyes, the only thing about the creature that wasn't hideous, were scanning her injured arm.

Hathor lifted her chin a little, letting her silken hair slide away from her face — if she couldn't stand, the least she could do was show her face when she spoke to this lowly beast.

"I demand to know why you have brought me here." She said in the strongest most commanding tone she could muster.

At her words the creature's glowing blue eyes shot up to meet hers, they only looked at her for a moment before it shifted its gaze towards the river beyond her, in a sort of sad and distant manner.

"It was not my intention that you should have come here." It said, its voice rippling with a small hound-ish growl of irritation.

"You merely fell through the portal, my lady." His rich voice made Hathor feel almost warm when she heard it, she scolded herself for wanting to scoot closer.

He hadn't said anything about the amulet, she was positive there was a connection between it and his ability to appear in the upper world — none of the gods, not even Ra, could just appear somewhere — as far as she knew Sokar was the only god who could open portals.

Sokar… If she could find him down here, he could have her back on the surface in no time.

The only problem was she had no idea where in the Duat that god lived… if you could even get there at all.

A thought suddenly struck her. Her powers of persuasion worked on animals, mortals, and even the gods; though with the gods, it was somewhat less predictable — If this creature had a heart, she could manipulate it.

She turned her golden gaze back onto the creature, looking deep into its shimmery blue eyes; she willed herself into its emotions, its feelings, her sharp eyes penetrating the creature's heart — she was surprised at the almost overwhelming emotion she found there, a great, great sadness lay upon its heart like an incurable disease, sapping out all warmth and light. She didn't allow herself to think about why this creature's heart felt so eerily like the hearts of mortals, she continued her search — ah, there it was: loyalty, obedience… submission.

Her voice was now the one to fill the cold dark air with warmth, it rippled like liquid as she now asserted herself with strength and power. She stood up, chin held high, her eyes blazing like the fires of the earth as she spoke to the creature before her.

"I command you to return me to the lands of Egypt." As the words left her, she could feel the heart inside the beast surge in response to her command.

"I cannot, my lady." Was the pained response the creature almost groaned in reply, it could not take its eyes away from hers, its chest was heaving with pained breaths — it could not resist her power, but something far more powerful than Hathor was preventing the creature from doing her bidding.

"Why not?" She demanded. She would not release the creature from her control, she would get what she wanted.

It was breathing very heavily, its human chest fighting for air against the powers that were tearing it apart, its jackal face was twisting with pain, yet it still could not break Hathor's gaze. It leaned forward, placing a hand on the ground for support, its whole body weakening.

"I… cursed — I cannot… my lady." It gasped, its eyes were now begging her for mercy.

Hathor had seen the creature like this before, a vivid memory was suddenly conjured up before her.

 _… As a thief and a jackal you have come into my gardens… desecrating the very earth you walk upon with the vile stench of death…_

 _It was Osiris, the light of Ra was in his eyes as he spoke to the wretched hound writhing on the ground beneath his feet._

 _… I bind you to the Underworld… to eternally wander the hollow and lightless world of the Duat, where the Shade-eaters dwell…_

 _The creature was reaching its hand out for help, the jackal's mouth opened to form the desperate words, to beg that powerful god for mercy…_

Hathor's whole body shivered when she noticed the creature was standing up, it rose to its full hight, wrapped its charred hand around its staff, and with one solid jerk tore it from the wet black earth.

The memory of her dream had made Hathor lose her concentration for a moment, she snapped her attention back to the creature now towering over her.

"You can't travel to the overworld without being summoned, can you?" She demanded.

Was it really possible for a god to be so controlled? This creature didn't seem to live within the rules she had always believed to be true — but this was unheard of. Gods could not be summoned! They weren't controlled like slaves, fetched on a whim to do someone els's bidding!

And yet, again the creature seemed to be struggling, fighting against her commands and some other power; something was restricting this creature, manipulating him.

"No… my lady, I cannot." It said, each word was a growl, its muscles clenching as it fought a silent battle against invisible forces.

Hathor could feel herself weakening, she was standing on her injured ankle which could barely hold her weight, and she was fighting for control of the creature, fighting against something much more powerful than she was.

"Take me to Sokar." She said, her eyes glowing with the force she placed on her words.

The creature bowed. "As you command, my lady." In one smooth motion it stepped forward and lifted her effortlessly off the ground, the portal opened and they dropped into the void.


	3. Chapter III

_Chapter III_

 _Moonlight and Gold_

* * *

"Hathor! I demand you open this door!" Horus's deep voice echoed through his father's palace halls, turning on his heel he grabbed a mortal servant by the arm, stopping them in their tracks, pulling them in towards his face he yelled at the man, "Go fetch your lord, quickly now!" He practically threw the human across the marble floor, he stumbled and fled to his master.

Horus slammed his bare shoulder into the door, the stone frame groaned under the blow — the hallway echoed with the running footsteps of the palace guards.

Again he rammed into the door, the massive wooden structure gave a creak of protest before giving way, slamming onto the smooth marble floor with a thundering crack; the room was flooded with light from the numerous torches that rushed in.

The room was empty, the air flowed in peacefully through the large archway leading to the balcony. Hathor had not shown her face since she entered this room the previous night, where could she have gone?

"No, this cannot be — she wouldn't have just left without having spoken to anyone, someone would have seen her!" He yelled the last part at the guards nearest him, they stepped away from him slightly, murmuring that they had not seen their lady since yestermorn.

Horus stepped out onto the balcony, the scent of Hathor's perfumes wafted through the silken fabric that hung in the archway, blowing gently in the cool night breeze. He clenched his fists in an attempt to conceal his emotions.

"My son, what has happened?" It was the voice of Osiris.

They faced each other, Horus's liquid-blue eyes met with the dark green of his fathers.

"Father," he said, giving a respectful nod. "Hathor has not been seen since yesterday evening, I believe she has been stolen away."

Osiris was looking down at the floor, he crouched and, pulling back one of his long white sleeves, swept a hand across the smooth stones.

"I believe this is the work of Set." Horus said through clenched teeth, Osiris looked up from his now dirty hand. "No, my son. This is not of my brother's doing." He said, his voice was calm, yet there was in his expression a certain look of concern his son had never before witnessed in him.

"But father, who else but he would have had the resources to steal her away in such a manner? His motives are certainly strong enough — we all know he has wanted her powers for himself for some time now." He said, not noticing the dark ashen-sand he was standing on, and that his king was holding in one ring-adorned hand, letting it spill slowly through his fingertips back to the stone floor.

"Something much darker and more sinister than Set has stolen away the young goddess." Said Osiris in his deep calm voice, his brow creased with a tense expression of distress as he stood, he took one of Horus's hands and placed some of the black ash-sand in his palm.

"Hathor has been taken by a creature of the Underworld." He said, his emerald-green eyes were filled with an immense sadness, and his words laden with heavy sorrow.

 _She will bring the beast back to the lands of Egypt._

The words of the Seeress echoed through his mind. Osiris shuddered, he had always assumed the prophecy was speaking of Nephthys — but could it be that Hathor was somehow connected with that terrible creature of destruction?

Osiris was drawn from his reverie when he realized Horus was talking, "… to Nefertum, see if he knows who has taken her." He was saying, "Father, I'm sorry, I should have told you."

Osiris looked puzzled, "Tell me what? You didn't know anything about this, did you?"

Horus looked back down at the dark unearthly sand, "She had been asking questions, she wanted to know about Anubis."

Osiris looked like a different god when he heard that name, he clenched his fists and slammed them against the stone banister. "She must have found the amulet… How could I have been so careless?" He muttered to the cold stone, but Horus heard too, "She had been asking about the tokens of the gods," he said, "And whether any such token had been made for the god Anubis."

He paused for a moment to see how his father would react, when he received no response he continued, "I told her I did not know of any such token having been made, she did not seem satisfied, but let the topic rest… that was the last I saw her."

Osiris absently nodded and said quietly, "You should have told me."

He turned and made his way through the chambers, his long white robes flowing behind him, he gestured to a group of soldiers standing by the entrance to the hall, "You three, let none enter or leave this room." Osiris called to them, "The rest of you, come with me." He turned the corner, the room darkened as the soldiers with torches followed him, their footsteps could be heard echoing through the stone corridors.

"Father?" Horus called out, as he heard his Osiris' footsteps receding down the hall he quickly jogged after him, "Father! What is it you would have me do?" He was walking in step with the emerald-eyed god, Osiris did not respond to his son's questions, his hand was wrapped tightly around the pommel of his jewel-encrusted sword, he was clenching and unclenching his fist.

More guards joined the group, there was a veritable army following the two gods by the time they reached the palace steps — Osiris leapt forward, in a smooth motion transforming into a massive golden bull, he charged forward with an unnatural speed, the glorious beast's perfectly sculpted muscles rippled with ease; Horus transformed shortly after his king took off, he spread his golden wings and followed him through the air into the moonlit Egyptian night.

They tore along the banks of the Nile like a storm, bearing down on the great city of mortals that lay before them — the ground shook beneath the feet of the bull as it traveled across the land, seemingly being chased by the shadow of Horus above him.

Osiris' metallic hooves gave a resounding clang as he stomped into the Egyptian cemetery, the stones that made up the mortal's graves looked white in the pale moonlight, they were all marked with hieroglyphs — a gift from the gods.

Horus landed gracefully beside his father, the bull's emerald eyes were stunning when set against the gold of his body — he was searching for something, his large magnificent head turned from side to side as he walked through the desert graveyard; he stopped before a crypt.

The crypt had an image of a falcon with spread wings carved into its doorway, it had an inscription over it that read: 'He of Restau'.

Osiris transformed like liquid back to his human form, placing his ring-covered hand on the image of the falcon, he closed his eyes and murmured quietly, "Hurry to me… hurry to me… hurry to me…"

A loud crack could be heard, like the crack of stone, and the seal of the great door broke, sand exploded outwards from around the edges of the door, it groaned and fell forwards — Osiris had stepped back, gesturing Horus to do the same, and the door landed with a thundering boom in the dust at their feet.

A hissing cold was blowing from the entrance to the crypt, its breeze carried whispers of a world that denied the souls of the living to enter — and the souls of the dead to escape.

A deep smooth voice cut through the harsh whispers, "My lord Osiris has called my name. How is it that I may serve the beloved of Ra?"

Osiris' strong voice echoed into the crypt in response, "I ask safe passage through the realm of the dead." His expression was firm, too firm — Horus sensed neither of them were going to enjoy this trip.

"As my lord commands." Was the reply from the crypt, "The way is clear, may the light of Ra guide you."

Osiris wrapped his hand around the hilt of his sword, and turned to address the palace guards who only just now entered the sandy graveyard, "You will guard the entrance to the crypt and await our return." He said. He gave Horus a nod, and they entered the black tomb.

They stepped over the threshold, the door to the crypt immediately rose into the air and slammed back into the square entrance, sand sucked in through the cracks around its edge, sealing it in place. Darkness swarmed around them, Horus threw his hands out in front of him, not even his sharp eyes could pierce this darkness.

He heard the Pharaoh say something under his breath, a green fire sprung to life, casting a weird light across the elaborately painted walls. Horus didn't take the time to read the seemingly endless lines of hieroglyphics, but he did notice the large painted murals that stretched out across the stones, they appeared to depict the passage of a mortal soul after death. He took note of the images as he and Osiris made their way down the dark stone staircase.

The paintings started out by depicting a dead Pharaoh being mummified, his wrapped body whose organs had all been removed, except for the heart, was placed within his tomb.

All the Pharaoh's possessions were transported to his tomb on the shoulders of his slaves, and placed all about his sarcophagus.

The next image showed a falcon-headed god standing over the body of the dead Pharaoh, the god lead the dead Egyptian to the deepest chamber of his crypt, they were depicted standing in a vast pool of black water, a small boat was waiting for them.

The god and the Pharaoh sailed on the boat to a black shore, horrible creatures awaited the soul of the Egyptian mortal, at the head of the army of demons stood a disgusting creature, it was dressed in the garb of the gods, yet was deformed beyond imagining — the beast had the hideous head of a jackal, in its hands it held a staff bearing the mark of the dead.

The soul was carried beyond the vicious beasts, he disembarked the boat at the gates to the afterlife.

The paintings depicted the Egyptian at the end of his journey, standing before the scales of the heart. Two gods were depicted standing by the scales, a woman, who's symbolic feather lay on one side of the scale, stood beside an Ibis-headed man. Horus recognized them to be Ma'at, goddess of justice and truth, and Thoth, the god of wisdom.

The gods weighed the mortal's heart. The final image depicted the two possibilities: one version of the Egyptian was displayed as being devoured by fire — his heart had been heavy with wrong-doing; and the other version of the Egyptian was displayed as passing through to the final gate — his heart had been light, he would make it to the afterlife.

The intricate mural, as well as the lines of hieroglyphs, ended in the burial chamber of the crypt, Horus stopped short, realizing Osiris was standing motionless in front of the sarcophagus. He had not even glanced at the murals depicting the mortal's passage to the afterlife — perhaps he thought that by not looking at it he could avoid the same fate himself — but he could not avoid the so prominent truth of mortality that stood on display before them now, lit by the soft green light.

Osiris quickly averted his eyes, making his way to the passage at the other end of the small room. There was another staircase that brought them to the bottom of a shaft, it was the deepest point in the whole tomb — and the closest to the Underworld.

They were standing in a small square chamber, the side walls were undecorated, but on the wall directly in front of them was a massive and intricate carving of a falcon, its wings were spread, and there was a circle of hieroglyphs surrounding it. The words on the wall throbbed with energy, it felt like they were living things, frozen in stone.

The carving of the falcon began to vibrate, the centre of the bird opened up and a black liquid began pouring from it, covering the floor, filling the room until the two gods were knee-deep in the dark fluid — the flow ceased, and the entire carving of the falcon suddenly vanished, leaving a bird shaped doorway into the Underworld.

The black liquid flowed lazily between the two worlds, Osiris waded through the opening in the wall, Horus following right behind him, fascinated by the smooth and seamless doorway linking the two worlds together.

On the other side of the stone wall the black water was running as a river, grey reeds grew on its dark muddy banks. A small boat was waiting for them.

* * *

Horus had no idea how uncomfortable the mighty god Osiris was at that moment — he didn't show it, he merely looked resolved and focused on completing the task at hand.

There was an extremely pale god standing on the boat, his hair was the color of silver, and a silver-grey shendyt was wrapped around his lithe figure; his features were long and pointed, and his nose was hooked a little, giving him an overall bird-like appearance — like a pure white falcon.

"You had a pleasant journey here, I presume?" He said, a little smile playing at his thin lips, his voice was as deep and smooth as an ocean — very fitting for a god of the Duat.

Horus avoided the god's unblinking eyes, the pupils were black as the ebony boat he stood on.

"We do not wish to stay here long, Sokar." Said Osiris, the smile on Sokar's lips quickly vanished, "As my lord wishes." He said, "If you and my lord Horus would kindly step aboard, we will be on our way."

They both climbed onto the small boat. There were no oars, no rudder, and no sail of any kind. The boat moved when its master commanded it, and they sailed where the black-waters flowed.

As they sailed swiftly through the Duat, Horus looked about him; they were moving far too quickly for him to get a very good look at their surroundings, but it was cold, and dark, and he couldn't bear the thought of Hathor being trapped down here — who knew what the dark creatures of this world could do even to an immortal?

"Please do not attempt to touch the waters, lord Horus." Came the deep voice of Sokar, "It is magic, and not water, that now carries us through the Duat."

Horus hadn't even thought of touching it, but he gave the disturbingly white god a nod of thanks, "So you are the god of portals… and yet you carry us through the underworld as our ferryman?" He asked.

"Indeed. I am not merely god of tomb entrances, but also of transit through the Duat, which includes the magic that now carries us." He lifted one of the two amulets that hung around his neck, it had the image of a Hennu bark engraved in its surface — it was identical to the boat they were standing on.

"I have cast a spell on many of the rivers here — wherever the waters run black, there my ship can carry me with the speed of death itself." He said with pride.

Horus was impressed, no wonder this god of the Underworld was so highly revered by even the most ancient of immortals.

"If you are capable of traveling anywhere you want in both worlds, why live in the realm of the dead?" Horus asked, but was surprised to hear a mirthful laugh come from the pale god, "Lord Horus, the Underworld is not all that meets the eye." He said, "The kingdom that lies beyond the first gate is fair enough to rival even your own sweet Egypt." He winked, the first time either of his eyes had closed since they met, "Our lord Ra even gave me my own small domain down here."

Sokar's gaze shifted to something in the distance, and he muttered under his breath "…my sweet Amhet… the most beautiful land in all the worlds."

He seemed to realize he had been in conversation with someone, and moved his gaze back to Horus.

"It is everything outside the gates that you should be wary of, bright Horus," he said "Those are the hollow lightless lands, haunted by the the lost souls of mortals… to wander in that realm would be to suffer a fate far worse than death. Not even the creator gods travel outside the first gate; none know how far it stretches." He gave an almost imperceptible shudder, and shifted his unblinking eyes towards the land in front of them, or behind them — Horus quickly developed the belief that this un-blinking god was the only one who could see the faceless objects and landscapes that whisked by them in a fraction of a second. From what he already knew of this place though, he wasn't so sure he wanted to see more than the stream of dark colors currently flowing past the magical boat.

They continued sailing across the black river in silence.

Horus let his mind drift back to Hathor… Why did she always have to get herself in over her head? All the gods said she was powerful, that her powers were growing — but it was never enough for her, she never gave up her search for… what?

Horus realized he never really knew what it was she seemed to be searching for, he had never asked. Perhaps he just assumed she would tell him on her own, that he wouldn't need to ask.

He felt his throat constrict with fear. He felt responsible for her, whether he admitted it or not, and he feared that this would be the time she finally got herself into a predicament he could not save her from.

He should have known. He should have known she was going to do something rash, she always had that look about her when she was making some new plan — why would she never learn? She always regretted it after the deed was done.

His throat tightened even more when he remembered the look on her face, that broken look she always had when she thought no one was looking, that look of longing… He blamed himself. He should have known this would happen, and he should have done something to prevent it.

"We have arrived, my lords." Came the smooth voice of Sokar. They were slowing down considerably, gliding into a stone dock similar in appearance to those made by the Egyptian craftsmen of the Overworld. "The final gate is behind us, we are now in the the domain of Ma'at, all these lands are under her protection." He said, "I would join you, my lords, but the soul of another mortal calls for safe passage — I shall return when you have need of me." He bowed as they both disembarked his vessel, when they were both standing on the stone dock he vanished seemingly into thin air. They must have been traveling at a tremendous pace indeed if that was the speed at which they arrived here.

They stood on smooth blackened stone, the dark river sloshed its waters onto the stones, making their surface slippery and mirror-like. They were standing at the base of a very large staircase, firelight was dancing down the dark steps. The two gods began the long ascent, the air around them grew warmer as they neared the top.

At the top of the stairs was an expansive hallway, it was grand enough to be a throne room of the gods. It felt oddly like the white-marble palaces many of the gods made in Egypt, except this one was entirely of black stone, the hieroglyphs covering the massive pillars were inlaid with gold and silver, their words forming beautiful decorations that shimmered in the firelight. Massive black-iron braziers stood at the base of each pillar, their roaring flames filling the grand hall with warm light; shadows crept around the edges of the room, hiding the numerous entrances leading to unknown corridors.

The massive structure was teeming with life, or death — there was a stream of mortal souls coming from one of the side entrances to the hall, their eyes appeared to look right through the two new gods that now stood close them, they would merely taking one step at a time, slowly and mindlessly making their way to the other end of the beautiful black-marble hallway. Walking all through the great chamber were gods that Horus had neither seen nor even heard of before, these must be the gods of the Underworld, living in one of the few safe places in all the Duat.

The two gods, one with emerald eyes, the other with eyes the color of brilliant sapphires, stood beneath a massive onyx pillar, it must have been around twelve feet in circumference, and who knows how tall. Horus at last dared to ask his king, "If Hathor came to the Duat, would she not have come through one of Sokar's portals?" Osiris had not spoken to him since they left his palace, and he almost regretted having broken their long silence, but was surprised to hear the god's voice respond to his question. "Sokar's portals only lie within the tombs of the dead." He said with a sharpness in his tone, "Hathor vanished from within the palace walls — something else opened that portal."

He did not look at Horus when he said it, they were both walking along the line of black pillars, passing many gods and goddesses along their way. Osiris' gaze was also avoiding the line of dead souls walking along the other end of the massive hallway.

Horus again spoke. "What manner of god is this that can open a portal anywhere he chooses between both worlds? I have not heard of such a god before — he sounds powerful enough to rival even the Originals."

Osiris was becoming visibly more tense with each question put to him, he was gripping his magnificent sword so tightly his hand was turning white, the gold bands of his rings cut into his fingers. Osiris turned to face Horus so suddenly he threw an arm out to stop from running into him, Osiris' emerald eyes blazed with an unmistakable fire of anger, "It is a creature that must never be spoken of, a creature who is bound to this world and has been summoned by your sweet Hathor! I may not be able to free her from this place, Horus. Do you understand?"

Horus' ice-blue eyes flashed with defiance, "Such magic would have been beyond her, it cannot be entirely of her doing." He said, he was clenching his jaw, trying to hold back the flood of hostile emotions that were running through him. Osiris pulled his hand away, he turned and resumed their progression to the other end of the hall, "She has meddled in things that are beyond her comprehension ever since she came to Egypt." His words were bitter.

Horus still stood in the same spot, he called out, "Surely one of the gods of the Duat will grant her safe passage to the Overworld!" Osiris called back, "We shall see."

Horus resumed his walking, though maintaining a short distance behind the other god.

The two angry gods were nearing the other end of the massive chamber, there seemed to be some kind of commotion at that end, but it was hard to see what was going on through the thick crowd; it was parted on the other side, the stream of human souls slowly marching through. Occasionally you could hear a shout, or a scream of fear; there was a slow rhythmic clang that sounded like a slab of bronze hitting the floor. Horus grew curious to see what was going on, but did not leave his king's side — and Osiris appeared to have no intention of joining that crowd.

Off to one side was a beautiful woman that Horus almost mistook for an Egyptian mortal; her hair was cut as the Egyptian women do, her skin was a gorgeous shade of olive, and her garments were also that of an Egyptian woman, though it was made of leopard skins, and not fabric.

This splendid looking goddess held a very long sheet of papyrus in one hand, and was writing on it with a large birds feather. Osiris approached the her.

"Wise Seshat," he said, "We seek an audience with your lord."

She turned to look at the two gods, her charming deep brown eyes scanning each with an almost calculative interest.

"My lord Thoth has been expecting your arrival. I shall inform him of your request." She spoke in the form of Egyptian used by the humans of that land, Horus thought this was odd, as well as the news that they had been expected. Maybe the gods of the Duat had already found Hathor?

Osiris had gone back to squeezing the grip of his sword, rubbing the emerald in its pommel with his thumb.

The human looking goddess disappeared into the crowd, there was another heavy clang of metal striking the stone floor, a few more shouting voices.

Osiris walked a short ways from the crowd, he and Horus were again standing under another of the massive black-marble pillars, waiting.

The minutes felt like hours, there was another dull metallic clang, another uproar in the crowd, this time a woman's voice let out a scream — it was shortly silenced.

Horus was growing more and more curious to see how these mortal souls were judged, and passed on to the afterlife. He had just about made up his mind to join the crowd when his attention was drawn to the god approaching them.

The god that stood before them had the same shade of olive skin as the Egyptian looking woman they had just been conversing with. His almond shaped eyes were a soft brown, he wore a sand colored shendyt, and around his arms were bands of bronze — his appearance was overall rather like the human architects of Egypt, except for the nemes he wore on his head, the striped head cloth worn by pharaohs.

Osiris bowed — something Horus had ever witness his father do in his lifetime.

"Lord Thoth." He said respectfully.

Thoth's soft brown eyes were deceptively calculating, his strong Egyptian features gave him a strikingly handsome appearance. His hands one might've expected to be lithe and graceful as the rest of his visage — they probably were, once, but they were now scarred and cut, scraped and damaged from countless millennia of carving, painting, drawing, and writing words down on papyrus, and chiseling them into stone.

Thoth addressed Osiris. "This cannot take long Osiris, I do not expect the forty-two judges will last long without me." He showed absolutely none of the customary signs of respect, simply addressing Osiris as if he were a brother he was slightly upset with. Horus had expected something else entirely from one of the Originals, but perhaps this ancient of all gods, whose work is ceaseless, had given up all such formalities long ago. Osiris was just opening his mouth to speak when Thoth cut in, "Hathor came to this world through a portal that, by all the laws of this world, should not even exist." He crossed his arms, his pleasingly soft brown eyes were locked with Osiris' hard emerald ones — those soft brown eyes seemed to gaze into his soul, as if everything about a person was on display, a book laid out for him to read at his leisure.

Horus unceremoniously blurted out, "Do you know where she is?"

The god of wisdom now turned his gaze on him, his eyes scanned him once over from head to toe, a slight smile touched his lips at Horus' unceremoniousness. "I do." He said.

"Well, where is she?" Horus did not in any way notice the expression of great irritation on Osiris' face, he clearly was unaccustomed to being so ignored and run over.

"She is outside the first gate." Came Thoth's short reply.

"Has no one tried to get her out of there?" Said Horus.

"That place is dangerous for man, beast, and gods alike — no, no one has tried to 'get her out'." Despite his curt manner, Thoth seemed to enjoy having a conversation partner who wasn't constantly saying 'my lord', 'lord Thoth', 'your lordship', 'my king', 'mighty Pharaoh', etc., etc.,

Thoth spoke again, "It is my belief — and I am almost always correct in such matters — that Hathor was taken by Anubis. He is the only creature in the Underworld whose powers we, for some reason, know nothing about."

Horus probably shouldn't have been surprised that Thoth would say the name Anubis without batting an eye, but it still felt strange.

"So you're saying we should just give up?" Horus was a little upset with the general air of 'there's nothing to be done' going around.

"No." Said Thoth, "I think we should gather more information before we do anything rash. As it stands, all we know is that Hathor has come to the Duat without having been granted safe passage, and through a portal that _should not exist —_ this lack of knowledge disturbs me." Thoth's eyes flickered towards Osiris, then back to Horus, "We do not even know how Anubis came to be. He was not given his powers by Ptah, so we must _assume_ — and believe me, I do not use the word lightly — that he is a creation of Apophis, or bound to the Duat by some magic we do not as of yet know of. This creature logically shouldn't even exist." Thoth uncrossed his arms and without another word turned to leave.

"Is there nothing you can do?" Horus practically shouted at his back. Thoth paused just long enough to say, "None here can grant her passage to the Overworld, and she will not be able to pass through Sokar's portals." With that he vanished into the crowd.

Horus turned to Osiris and half growled, "Is he always so _forthcoming_ in conversation?" He folded his arms across his chest, still watching the crowd where Thoth had entered it. Osiris stepped in front of Horus, as he passed him he said, "No, that is about as long as any conversation I've ever had with him." They both walked back down the hallway in the direction they had come from, "Is there no other god in the Duat who can help?" Asked Horus. "There is one other who might find a way," said Osiris, "But I do not have high hopes." They walked a ways further down the hall, Osiris turned down a side entrance and they found themselves in another massive chamber. It was palpably black, so dark that you could not see the walls on either side of the room. There was a single flame in the centre of the chamber, it appeared to be floating in the air, its light reflected off a large pool of crystal clear water that lay beneath it.

The two gods walked all the way up to the edge of the flame's light, its flickering tongues of warmth licked their toes. It was hard to tell how far away the light was, or just how deep the pool of water ran.

Osiris called out into the darkness, "Neheb-kau, will you speak with us?"

A tall massive god stepped into the light, he had the darkest tan imaginable, and his excessively long hair was an unnatural shade of blond, and his eyes were pale white — he was blind.

"Ah, lord Osiris! I thought I'd never hear your voice in these halls again, how long has it been? three and a half millennia?" The god's voice was bright and sunny, and it had a certain warmth about it.

Osiris walked up to the smiling blond god, and they clasped arms in friendly greeting. "Neheb, my old friend, I'm afraid it is not you we have come to speak with, I merely wish to know where your master is."

Neheb-kau looked a little more serious, "My old friend, Ra is not an easy god to reach. He rarely brings his ship into these docks, and I fear even a god of your high standing cannot call him down from the heavens." Osiris nodded, "I did not think Fortune would smile on me that greatly, old friend. If he does choose to land here, will you tell him I must discuss a matter of greatest importance?" Neheb-kau nodded in assent, "I will certainly do as you ask. And I pray whatever matter it is can soon be resolved."

Osiris and the blind god again clasped arms, he and Horus then exiting the massive chamber.

They were again walking towards the massive staircase they had first taken to get here, Osiris answered Horus' question without it even being asked. "Neheb-kau, guardian of Ra when he is in the Duat — he has been blinded by all the time spent in Ra's presence. Those were the docks where Ra lands his ship when he spends time away from the heavens."

They now stood on the edge of the black river that brought them there, pale white Sokar was waiting for them on his Hennu bark. Osiris saw a glimmer of hopelessness in Horus' clear blue eyes, "My son… I am sorry. If the Originals cannot free her, than no one can."

Horus shook his head, "I will find a way… If it takes me a thousand years, I will find a way to free Hathor from this blasted Underworld."

They stepped aboard the dark boat, and the next moment were speeding back to the portal.


	4. Chapter IV

_Chapter IV_

 _Kingdom of Apophis_

* * *

 _Anubis tore at the black ground with his horrible claws, water swiftly filled the gashes, forming a mirror-like pool before him — in it he saw his reflection, his hideous jackal's face. He growled at the image before him, angrily splashing the small pool of water across the ground._

 _Why had the gods forsaken him? Was he not deserving of living among them, or his prayers worthy of their notice?_

 _He covered his mangled face with his hands, his whole body shook with silent anger; his sapphire-blue eyes reflected the subtle light of the Underworld. "Why is this happening… why is this happening to me?" He whispered to the little pool of water lying at his knees… a small moan escaped his throat when he heard his own voice — even that had been mangled by his father's curse._

* * *

"Take me to Sokar." She said, her eyes glowing with the force she placed on her words.

The creature bowed. "As you command, my lady." In one smooth motion it stepped forward and lifted her effortlessly off the ground, the portal opened and they dropped into the void.

She took a gasp of air just before they were consumed by the hole that ripped open beneath them.

Sands sucked them into the void, a cold in-between place that should never have existed. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see what this nothingness looked like; the creature's massive arms were wrapped around her very tightly this time, but she still felt as if she would fly off into nothingness, everything about this void was tearing her away from the arms that held her.

Sand was whirling all around them, her ears were filled with the sound of a horrible whispering, it was so loud it felt like it was screaming into her soul. She was holding her breath and squeezing her eyes closed, small objects kept hitting and scraping against her arms and legs, nicking and bruising her whole body — she could've sworn she felt clammy hands reaching out to touch her, sliding across her smooth skin.

There was a loud rumbling sound, and the world materialized around them — they were out of that horrible between. "We have arrived, my lady." The creature said, its deep growling voice brought her immediately back to reality. Hathor didn't want to open her eyes. She had wrapped her arms around the creature's massive neck some time during their fall, and she was still squeezing it as tightly as she physically could in her weakened state, her whole body shaking from the horror of what they had just traveled through. She could feel the creature's burned fur against her soft face, it made her want to puke.

She opened her eyes. At first she thought they were still in the same place, standing on the black banks of a river — the only difference was that the waters of the river ran black, not at all like the clean waters of the river they had just been standing beside.

Hathor realized she was no longer controlling the creature, she had let her mind go blank the moment they fell through the portal, releasing the creature from her mental grasp.

The beast still held her wrapped in its powerful arms, he was carrying her towards what looked like a small portion of sandstone wall; the waters of the river ran all the way up to the wall… and stopped — it was as if it continued through the wall, just without any visible entrance.

The creature placed Hathor down on the banks of the river, she had to try very hard not to either pass out or throw up… or both.

Hathor was wracking her brain trying to remember what they were doing here, finally recalling her last command to the creature. "Where is Sokar?" She asked, still very shaken and disoriented from the terrifying journey. "He comes." The creature said, as if that was really an answer. It would have made more sense to her if she had known the black blur that flashed passed her on the water was the god in question.

There was a change in the building on the river; a bird-shaped doorway opened in its smooth sandstone wall, the waters of the river now flowing freely through the hole — Hathor recognized the interior of the chamber to be an Egyptian tomb.

The black blur sped across the water through the doorway, and sped back down the river again, vanishing in the distance as quickly as it had appeared.

Through the bird-shaped doorway into the tomb Hathor could see a soft green light appear, it was quickly growing fainter — a sudden realization hit her full force. That was Sokar's portal. The Egyptian tomb wasn't actually here in the Duat, it was on the surface, and if she could get into that building before the portal closes… she would be free.

Hathor leapt to her feet and jumped into the river, her whole body was immediately wrapped in its icy cold depths, her mouth was filled with the vilest taste she had ever experienced; she proceeded to half swim, half crawl her way through the mud, reeds, and Ra knows what else, towards the portal. She could barely keep her head above the surface, her blood-red hair was turning a rusty brown color from the water; she stretched out an arm towards the portal, desperately trying to get through. The moment her outstretched hand touched it she screamed with pain — her hand was burning, it felt like acid eating her flesh. She felt the water of the river pulling her down, she had no more strength to swim.

She felt rough arms wrapping around her waist, clear air filled her lungs the moment her head was above the surface of the river's waters… she was being dragged back to the banks of the river by the creature that brought her here.

She was lying on solid ground, limp, shivering from the frigid cold, and taking huge exhausted gulps of air, but she eventually had the strength to pull herself into a sitting position, looking back at the portal… it had closed — it would not let her through.

She sat there in disbelief, could her luck get any worse? She looked down at her singed fingertips. She stared at that in disbelief too. That was the only other way in or out of this accursed place, and it would not let her through. She stood up, clenched her injured hand into a fist, and began limping away from the river towards nowhere in particular — she wasn't about to stay here one second longer.

"Where are you going?" Came the inhuman voice of the creature.

"Away." She said, continuing to limp away from the river. Why did it care anyway?

"It is not safe here, I must take you back to the forest." The creature said, now walking behind her.

"Don't touch me!" She shouted, throwing out an arm of warning, "I'm never going through those horrible holes again!" She continued her angry and obstinate limping towards nowhere in particular. She hadn't even bothered to notice that the creature was respecting her wishes without her even controlling it.

"You are injured, my lady, you cannot walk." It said, still following her at a short distance.

"Well that's my business, isn't it? And if you think for one second that I'm going to just let you pick me up and pull me into a sand-filled hole again, you are completely mistaken!"She yelled at the creature. She was far too angry to be scared anymore.

Her hand throbbed, she was soaking wet, covered in mud, and everything else still hurt too. She didn't make it very far before she collapsed again, she curled up in a ball — there was no point to any of it, the creature might as well have killed her. She had been so close… it was right there… why wouldn't the portal let her through?

"Why is this happening…" She whispered to the dirt, "… why is this happening to me?" She didn't even try to stop the tears that now flowed freely — they cleaned her face a little anyway, and there was no one around to see, other than the creature.

If Hathor had been paying attention, she probably would've noticed the change in the creature's mood after she had unconsciously whispered those those few hopeless words into the mud.

* * *

Hathor had always loved the sunlight, she felt sometimes as if she were a vessel into which it could pour itself endlessly — she could never seem to get enough of its warmth.

It came as a great surprise to her, than, to find herself glowing right now.

Hathor jolted upright, she stuck her arms out in front of her — sure enough, they were hazy with a soft orangey light, it was fading, and shortly she was back to her normal shade of bronze. She felt warm too, but that also faded just as quickly.

Now what in the two worlds was that?

Hathor started rubbing her arms nervously. It didn't take her long to talk herself into the belief that it had merely been her imagination. She must have fallen asleep after her fall, she could have been dreaming.

She looked up to see the creature standing a little ways in front of her. There was no way she was going to ask it if she had been glowing. It's a stupid kind of thing to ask someone… she wouldn't do it.

"Was I glowing just a second ago?" Hathor heard herself blurting out.

The creature tilted its head inquisitively. "You are always glowing, my lady." It stated simply.

Of course he thought she was alway glowing. The creature lived in a dark world consisting almost entirely of black and white — of course a goddess with abnormally bright ruby-red hair and eyes the color of pure gold would look like they were glowing.

She felt like kicking herself; she wasn't going to last very long down here if this is how her mind reacts to such a brief time in the Underworld.

Hathor also hated that she felt like apologizing to the creature — not for asking it a stupid question, but for the fact that she had spent her whole life basking in Ra's great light, while it had lived in this unbearable world of darkness. Hathor reminded herself that the creature Anubis had been banished to this world as punishment for its crimes… although she didn't actually know what its crimes had been. Osiris had always told her its crimes deserved a punishment worse than death, and she trusted Osiris' judgement in all things. She was becoming rather curious though as to what the creature had actually done.

She looked back up at the creature, her eyes wandering across its massive figure. Its human chest and arms were so terribly burned and deformed by scars, it looked more like a whipped slave than a god… all the other gods that could transform into animal figures were such an image of perfection, each one turning into the most beautiful specimen of the animals they chose, their exquisite bodies made of purest gold — never this hideous mishmash of dog and man. The jackal's head was covered in filthy black fur ending at the neck, its arms looked almost human by comparison to the hands, dog-like… maybe not even like a dog, more like the talons of some strange bird, or perhaps a cat; those clawed hands were meant for nothing more than to destroy, to rip and tear apart flesh and stone.

Hathor wondered if the creature had always looked this way, maybe its dark soul had physically transformed it into the creature it now was.

"What exactly did you do that warranted your banishment?" Hathor heard herself asking. She bit her lip so hard she was sure it would bleed. She had been curious, but asking the creature itself what it had done was the last thing a sane person would do. Why could she not just keep her mouth shut?

The creature did not immediately respond. For a moment Hathor thought she might have angered the beast; it might attack her, or just leave her here at the mercy of the other horrible creatures of the Duat — but she quickly realized that was not the case.

It simply looked surprised, or at least as surprised as a jackal-headed creature could look.

Anubis had turned his deep-blue eyes away from hers, doing so unconsciously, his mind's eye now gazed deep into the past. At long last he spoke. "I broke an oath." He said very slowly, his voice was perhaps a little softer when he spoke now, if that was even possible for a beast with the voice of a wild dog. "I never meant any of them harm, but I was forbidden from entering that place, and they feared me. I had never even seen it with my own eyes… all I wanted was to see it."

Hathor was immensely puzzled, nothing about what the creature said made any sense.

"Never even seen what?" She asked.

"Egypt." Anubis said, his voice rippling with a certain sort of pain Hathor had never heard before. She was completely blown away by the idea that one of the gods might have never set foot in Egypt, the very land they had created for themselves, set apart from all other lands under the light of Ra.

"But if not Egypt, then where did you come from?" Hathor asked.

"The dessert lands that lie on its borders." Anubis replied, "My mother was banished there before I was born."

This could not be true, it went against everything Osiris had told her.

"I don't believe you." Hathor said, "I think you're lying. This is just some sick game you're playing with me!" She hadn't realized she was shouting — perhaps she was trying to convince herself that she didn't believe at least a little of what the creature had told her.

But a memory of a dream was still haunting her — an image of Osiris standing in the palace, yelling at a beautiful goddess that she had never seen before…

 _"The boy shall not set one foot into my kingdom or by the light of Ra he shall be doomed to a fate far worse than death!"_

 _The woman had cried out to him, "Osiris, my love, please do not do this terrible thing!"_

 _"An oath has been made, Nephthys… " He turned his back on the beautiful goddess, she turned and fled from the palace…_

Hathor had never let herself put faith in the truth of dreams before — but she would have felt allot better if what Anubis had just told her hadn't fit perfectly with everything she had seen.

"It does not matter if you believe me, my lady." Anubis said, "Right now we need to move."

Hathor stood up, but could not resist one last question. "How… how long have you been trapped in the Duat?" She asked.

Again Anubis looked slightly surprised, he took a moment to contemplate his answer. "Three thousand years." He said at last very slowly, as if saying it out loud was painful.

Hathor's mouth dropped involuntarily. Three thousand years… that many years spent in a place like this was unimaginable. Hathor felt a small pang of pity for the creature; it quickly grew into extreme sympathy. "I'm sorry…" She said softly.

The creature just stared blankly at her with those eyes as blue as the Nile. Hathor had no idea the flood of emotions rushing through him right now. But for the first time the goddess of love looked on this grotesque creature with sympathy in her eyes, and not fear or disgust — or hatred.

Anubis gestured towards her ankle, "Are you capable of walking, my lady?" He asked her.

As a goddess, something as simple as a sprain does not take long to heal — it could already bear her weight again, but she wasn't going to be running anywhere for the next few days.

Hathor nodded, "I can walk." She said, and they began their journey across the black wastelands. Hathor hadn't even noticed that she was no longer freezing cold, but rather comfortably warm.

She hadn't felt much like talking, she was exhausted, hungry, thirsty, and aching from head to toe. Anubis had said they needed to move, and she honestly didn't care much at this point where he took her as long as it wasn't through one of his portals. She realized that if she tried to run she would probably just end up going in circles, so she contented herself with walking behind the massive god for the rest of the day, if it could be called day.

Night had already fallen across the world above them by the time Anubis let Hathor stop for rest — the first time she had lain down of her own volition in the past three days — and she closed her eyes, gladly letting sleep overcome her.

* * *

Hathor awoke to the sound of Anubis' portal opening, when the sands cleared he was kneeling a short ways away from her — he must have left sometime while she was sleeping.

There were fresh burn marks covering his whole body, and a faint smell of charred flesh wafted through the air. Where had he gone?

He stood slowly and called out to her, "Are you ready, my lady?"

Hathor nodded her head, rising and following him as he started walking.

They made their way much as they had done the day previous, not talking, merely walking at a steady pace across the dark terrain.

Each step she took hurt, she could barely even see her hand in front of her face let alone the massive god that she was trying to follow, but he kept stopping to look back at her, checking to see if she had fallen behind; his eyes almost seemed to glow in this darkness.

Hathor was surprised to find the terrain becoming more and more rocky, and as she peered into the grayish darkness around them she could see what can only be described as a fallen city of the gods; huge boulders lay half buried in the dirt around them, great statues lay broken and scattered, their faces long forgotten by time — it took Hathor a moment to realize they were walking through the streets of an ancient kingdom.

"What is this place?" She asked Anubis. He was muttering something under his breath, it sounded a little like growling. "One of Apophis' cities," He said, "Destroyed eons ago by the other originals." His deep voice echoed through the vast empty streets.

Hathor's whole body was suddenly shivering from the cold, reminding her that she had felt oddly warm throughout the day. "I knew Apophis created the Duat," she said, wrapping her arms around her torso, "But I had no idea there had been cities here."

Just another one of those things she didn't know about the Underworld — Hathor was very quickly realizing that this place was practically a total mystery to all the gods of the Overworld, one would think the gods would be more curious about the world that lies beneath their own.

Hathor ran her hand across one of the large boulders, her delicate fingers tracing the hieroglyphs etched into its surface. "Do you know what happened here?" She asked softly.

Anubis was standing stark still, his back towards her, she could see his massive burned shoulders slump slightly and he leaned heavily on his staff. "I do." He said. He was growling with each breath now, Hathor guessed he was in a tremendous amount of pain… though from what exactly she could not tell.

The jackal gestured towards an open doorway, it was the entrance to one of the few buildings that still had four walls, though no roof. Hathor stepped inside the building and sat down, the creature followed her in, leaning against one of the walls for support and keeping a wary eye on the entrance.

Hathor wrapped her arms around her legs to try and regain some warmth, and had almost forgotten that she'd asked the creature a question when she heard him speak again.

"Apophis was discontent with only receiving one third of all mortal souls." He said, his eyes still on the doorway, "So he sent the shade-eaters to attack the souls of mortals as they made their journey through the Duat, they devour them and add them to their ranks.

The other gods discovered Apophis had betrayed them and they waged war upon his great armies, destroyed his cities, scattered his minions, and cast Apophis into the Ether — he is kept from both worlds by Ra and their sister Serqet."

Hathor looked confused, "Apophis was given one third of all mortal souls?" She asked.

Anubis gave a slow nod. "The souls of mortals are divided according to their worth: the souls that prove unworthy are destroyed, the souls that prove worthy pass on to the afterlife, and the souls that are neither good or bad remain in the Duat — those souls belong to Apophis to do with as he pleases." He said.

"But how could the originals allow such an injustice to the mortal souls? How could they just hand them over to Apophis?" Hathor asked.

"Apophis took with him many mortal slaves when he came to the Duat," Anubis said, "They are the ones who built his empire — millions of mortals died making this place, and he just kept steeling more from the surface to replace the ones who'd died. Far more than one third of all mortals were slaves in this world, and they had no chance to pass to the afterlife, they were doomed to turn into shades when they died." Anubis said. He had leaned his staff against the wall and crossed his arms, standing in a semi relaxed position and looking directly at Hathor as he spoke.

Anubis continued. "The reason one third of all mortal souls goes to Apophis is because the other gods had grown afraid of his power. He was building an army, and was planning to march on the Overworld, to blot out Ra's light, and add the Overworld to his growing empire — and he had the power to do it.

The other gods found out about this, and decided far less would be lost if they simply made a pact with Apophis: Apophis would not enter the Overworld, and in return, the souls of mortals would pass through both the Overworld and the Underworld before continuing on to the afterlife, and they would be divided by thirds. This protected all of their creations in the Overworld, and they thought that the souls given to Apophis as payment would be enough to satisfy his desire for slaves in his realm… but they were wrong." The jackal's ears kept twitching towards the entranceway as if he could hear something outside, he finally turned his head, his sapphire-blue eyes staring intently into the cold dark street outside.

Their conversation had taken Hathor's mind off of how cold she was. This was the first genuinely open conversation about the Underworld that she'd ever had — even if it was with a beast of the Duat.

"How long has Apophis owned this world?" Hathor asked.

The creature's eyes were still focused on the street outside, "The Duat was given to Apophis as a gift from his siblings during the creation of the two worlds." Anubis said.

"And what of the human souls… the other third, what happens to them now that Apophis has been banished to the Ether?" Hathor asked. She was starting to wonder if perhaps Anubis was himself once a slave of the dark lord Apophis, or maybe a willing servant. She shuddered, rubbing her arms nervously.

"The pact made with Apophis is unbreakable." Anubis said, "All the souls that would have belonged to him are left to wander the Duat. They most likely will be taken by the shade-eaters, turned into shades themselves." Hathor sensed bitterness in his voice.

"Is there nothing to protect the souls?" She asked. She couldn't understand why the other gods would doom the mortals to such a horrible fate.

Anubis let out a strange animal-like sound, it could have almost been a cynical laugh. "The gods of the Overworld built the great gates shortly after the destruction of Apophis' cities. The gates are designed to hold back the hordes of shade-eaters and other minions of Apophis that still roam free, but the gates will only protect the souls of humans that are not yet judged — when a soul is judged it cannot pass back through the gates. So no, there is nothing to protect the souls that belong to Apophis; they must try to survive by their own means." There was anger in his voice.

Anubis was again looking at Hathor — his eyes still made her think of Horus. Her throat tightened uncomfortably, the last time she saw that handsome god he had looked at her with disappointment in his eyes. _"I do not know what kind of dark game you are playing at, Hathor, but I will have no part in it."_ His words came back to taunt her… she had always told him she neither wanted or needed protection, but for the first time in her life Hathor wished someone had stopped her from going too far.

"You should get some rest, my lady." The creature said, "We cannot stay here long."

The jackal-headed god pushed himself away from the wall, wrapping a clawed hand around his staff, he stepped outside the small one-room building into the misty street.

Hathor stayed sitting with her arms wrapped around her legs, she closed her eyes, going over the things the creature had just told her. She was eventually lulled to sleep by the sound of the wind blowing through the abandoned streets outside.


	5. Chapter V

_Chapter V_

 _The Dead Rise_

* * *

The cold winds blew, pouring through the streets like a ghost, running with feet that never touched the ground. It stretched out its icy hand and touched the goddess that lay so peacefully in the dark ruins. She was fire and gold, lying amidst the ash and stone. The cold winds pulled at the goddess, it whispered in her ear the voices of those who came for her.

 _"Feed on the light,"_ they whispered, _"… her light fades, the eye of Ra is fading."_

Hathor opened her eyes, the wind carried their whispers to her ears, _"… darkness and pain cannot hide her, darkness and pain cannot keep her safe."_ They whispered. They drew closer, the wind was no longer their messenger, their words were in the mist now. Voices cackled, the stones echoed with their crude laughter. _"The bright one is fading… Darkness and pain cannot keep her from us forever!"_ Hands and feet, heads and shoulders were emerging from the shadows. Hollow eyes stared without seeing through the mists; they didn't need eyes, these souls were as one with every stone in this most ancient of ancient cities.

Hands wrapped around her ankles, gripping her arms, cold fingers caressed her face — another pair of disgusting hands clasped around her throat.

A great heat filled Hathor's whole body and exploded outwards in a blinding flash of light, the blast was immediately followed by ear-splitting shrieks, echoing down the streets of the city ruins.

Hathor awoke to find herself sitting in the middle of a smoking heap of black charred stones, her eyes were still seeing the after image left from the bright explosion of light, and her ears were ringing from the horrible shrieks that had followed.

She leapt to her feet. As soon as her eyes adjusted to the darkness she tried to take in what had just happened — then she saw them. The shadowy creatures poured into the street by the thousands, crawling over the charred bodies of their fallen comrades. The smell of charred flesh filled her senses.

"Leave me alone!" She screamed frantically, she couldn't tell how many there were, but she could feel them lurking in every shadow. A shriek filled the air, followed by another, and another — small grey figures were crawling across the ruins towards the ruins of the building Hathor was standing in. She didn't pause to think, she turned and sprinted down the street, dodging fallen rocks and jumping over huge holes in the road. She didn't know which way she was turning, or what streets she had already run down, she ran onwards as fast as her legs would carry her.

Osiris had always told her even the gods must fear death, she wished now more than anything that she'd heeded his warnings, she wished she'd stayed well away from this nightmare.

She had finally managed to lose everything she'd ever cared about — not even Osiris could save her from this. She could be in this place for an eternity, she might never see the light of day again.

She was too exhausted to weep, she had done almost nothing but that since her arrival here. She knelt on the black cobbled streets, her bare feet were damp with her own blood from all the running and walking over rough terrain; her golden dress was torn to little more than rags, its delicate ornaments had long since fallen off. She closed her eyes, hopelessness washing over her like an icy cold wave.

 _"She has fire in her still… but it fades, it fades."_ The voices whispered through the streets. Hathor looked up into a pair of black voids, shadowy non-eyes in the face of a dead creature. Arms and legs, shoulders and heads covered every surface in the street; thousands of shadowy non-eyes staring down on the bright goddess.

Hathor turned her golden gaze back onto the creature, looking deep into its nightmarish non-eyes; she willed herself into its emotions, its feelings, her sharp eyes penetrating the creature's heart — she jerked back; the creature was completely unaffected by her magic… it didn't have a heart. None of them did. The realization hit her that she could not hold these creatures at bay with her own magic. She began scrambling backwards on the heels of her hands, kicking at the disgusting filthy creature with her feet.

 _"Never use the magic of another god or goddess. It is dangerous, unpredictable, and if you do not have that god's permission you would be entirely at their mercy."_ _The gods had warned her._

"What are you?" She moaned. The creature's breathing was strange, it hissed and gurgled — but its hands and feet made not a single sound.

 _"If you were to us the magic of one of the more powerful gods or goddesses you could accomplish things your own magic is incapable of, but only the most highly skilled sorcerer would even dream of attempting such a thing."_

Hathor's hands were bleeding. She grabbed a loose stone from the cobbled street and threw it at one of the creatures slowly crawling towards her, leaving the safety of the shadows.

 _"What could happen to me? What could happen if I used a spell too powerful?" She had asked._

 _"Your soul would be separated from your body as if you were a mortal… You would die, Hathor."_

The red haired goddess threw out her arms, her golden eyes glowed. "Lord Ra! Fill me with your light! Let your holy fires cleanse the darkness!" She screamed.

A great heat filled her body; her heart was tearing from the power that began to surge through it. A thought flickered through her mind… was she angering Ra by using his magic in this way?

Her eyes burned as the white light erupted from her body. Buildings crashed down around her, the stones of a thousand ages crumbled beneath the power of the blast.

By the time her eyes readjusted to the darkness the dust had cleared. The smoking remains of the vile creatures lay in heaps all around her.

The spell she cast was too powerful, her mind was going numb, her knees were week.

A cold mist was flowing into the smoking street, painting everything with a soft pale grey.

She heard a quiet scratching of claws on stone. A soft hissing breathing cut through her foggy thoughts… she couldn't think, her whole body was weakening rapidly.

 _"Feed on the light,"_ they whispered.

Hathor's eyes lolled in her head. She dropped to her knees, folding over on herself; her ruby-red hair poured over her shoulders like wine, covering her drooping head.

"… no," she whispered, "… not like this. Ra, do not abandon me now…" Her mind was slipping, the spell was still draining her. She no longer had the strength to even lift her head.

She couldn't tell how many there were, but she could feel them lurking in every shadow. Hands and feet, heads and shoulders were emerging from the shadows. Hollow eyes stared at her without seeing. Hathor fell on her side, her mind completely surrounded by darkness.

 _"… she fades."_ They whispered into the mist. Cold hands wrapped their strong fingers around her body.

* * *

Thunder roars through the stones, a dark cloud of black sand erupts from the gaping crack in the street.

The creatures must obey the call of their master, they must do as he bids. Grey bodies pour into the dark portal like liquid, following the call… it calls to them.

Screams fill the air, ancient beings who know nothing but suffering are howling with pain. They are being burned, but not by fire; they are being killed, though they cannot die. They are surrounded by darkness and pain.

The dark sands wash across the ancient streets, the portal has closed.

A beast kneels before a goddess on the streets of an ancient city. The goddess's once-gold dress is stuck to her skin with a thick layer of black mud, her blood-red hair hangs limply down her back, it's brilliant color not at all lessened by its wet and tangled state. In the eyes of the beast she is more beautiful than the setting sun.

Golden eyes open to meet sapphire.

"My lady?" It was the voice of Anubis. Hathor's heart leapt to her throat, her eyes dampened with involuntary tears of relief.

She stood up and looked at the jackal-headed god; by comparison to all the things that had been chasing her, this monster was the most familiar thing she'd seen all day. Hathor took a couple of steps towards the dark immortal, trying to get as close as possible to the thing that could protect her. This did not go unnoticed by the jackal-headed god.

"… what were those things?" Hathor whispered. Anubis had to tilt his head down considerably to look at her now, her head being about eye-level with his chest. "They are the slaves of Apophis." He said. The voice of the beast dropped when he spoke; it no longer sounded like a voice, it had more in common with the rumblings of the earth than with a voice.

The Jackal was breathing heavily; the face of the dog was twisted with pain. Blood slid down his mangled arms, dripping from his claws. Blood was stuck to the fur on his face; it ran down his massive back. And again, that horrible smell of burned fur and charred flesh.

"How did you defeat those… things?" Hathor asked, "There were thousands of them and not a single body lies in the street, where did they all go?" She asked. Anubis was growling, Hathor couldn't see anything down the street he was looking at, so she assumed he was growling at her. "Will they come back?" She asked. "They will." He said.

Anubis motioned her to follow him. They turned a corner, and found themselves walking down what must have been the old city's main street.

"Those things are the souls that didn't make it through to the afterlife, aren't they?" Hathor asked. "They are." He said.

"Those were humans…" She said quietly to herself in disbelief. The jackal went back to growling at the shadows. "They are no longer human." He said, "They are nothing more than husks doing the work of Apophis, they hunt down the souls that belong to him, ceaselessly adding to their ranks." Anubis kept turning his head from side to side, his sharp eyes looking down each street as they passed them by; his clawed hands were wrapped firmly around his staff.

This street was much wider than the others — or had been once, before it was filled with the rubble of fallen buildings. They were walking in front of a once magnificent palace, its gates had fallen thousands of years ago in some sort of explosion; one of the statues that stood atop the great structure lay cracked in the street, its arm had broken off, sitting on the ground in front of it. The statue's eyes stared blankly ahead at the two immortals as they passed by.

As she calmed down, Hathor began to pay more attention to the strong emotions coming from the jackal-headed god she followed. It was the second time since she first saw him that she actually observed his feelings — he perplexed her, his emotions were so vividly strong and strangely different from any other soul; mortal or immortal. And he didn't attempt to hide them from her as the other gods did, though she supposed this to be in part due to his unfamiliarity with her powers.

Something about this place upset him deeply… she sensed he had a strong memory here, an ancient memory. The emotions rushing through him right now were oddly similar to her own… the fear of this strange place, the confusion and sense of abandonment… they were changing — he felt betrayal… Hatred… Revenge.

Anubis' cold-blue eyes were looking directly at Hathor. She stopped in her tracks, the dark god had suddenly closed off the emotions she had been so unceremoniously sifting through. His gruesome face was twisted into a snarl, a deep eery growl resonated deep in his massive chest.

"Do you think I do not know what you are trying to do!" The beast roared. The street echoed with the crack of metal on stone as the end of Anubis' staff was thrust into the ground in anger.

Hathor was paralyzed. She couldn't move. She couldn't speak. She should have known better than to dig into the emotions of one of the most ancient and feared among the gods… Hathor cringed, her legs felt weak, her whole body was shaking. She had finally reached the point where she could no longer feel more afraid. She did the only thing she could possibly think of, she knelt down and cried out, "Forgive me my lord! I was merely trying to understand…" She had closed her eyes and cringed in anticipation of being struck by the god before her, but after a long silence she opened them again — The jackal-headed god was staring at her with disbelief in his eyes. "What would a goddess of light need to understand about a beast of the Underworld?" He asked, his horrible voice was harsh and bitter. Hathor let her eyes raise to meet his. "You were like the other gods once, weren't you?" She said. Anubis turned away from her, his fists were clenched. Hathor continued to his back, "What I don't understand is why you try to hide it."

The dark god was silent, he did not turn to look at the bright goddess when he next spoke. "We must leave the city." He said. Anubis pulled his staff out of the ground and started walking down the street, Hathor had no other choice than to follow.

The dark god seemed perfectly content to walk on in silence; Hathor had no intention of testing his temper again, so she contented herself with following him to wherever it was he was taking her in silence.

The hollow eyes of the Shades had taken ahold of her mind, she couldn't get their faces out of her head… their hissing gurgling breathing; she could almost remember hearing voices — and an explosion. It was the same light that she had seen when she cast the spell and lost consciousness shortly after… how could the first spell have been cast if she was asleep?

"What's happening to me?" She whispered under her breath.


	6. Chapter VI

_Chapter VI_

 _I Think, Therefore I Am Thoth_

 _Or, The Hall of Two Truths_

* * *

 _"O heart that was mine, permit me not to be wronged in the presence of Ma'at."_ The soul cried out. Its heart was placed on the scales, the united voices of forty two gods rang out as one: "Speak your confessions, mortal, that ye may receive your just rewards."

The soul of the Egyptian could not see the gods, its ghostly eyes were focused on the perfectly balanced scales that stood before it; on one end sat the warm beating heart of the Egyptian's now dead body — and on the other end lay a pure white feather.

 _"I have not stolen."_ The soul began slowly, the end of the scale holding the Egyptian's heart rose a little; encouraged, the soul continued. _"I have not uttered curses."_ Again, the heart rose a little higher. _"I have committed no sin."_ The heart gave a sudden throb, the end of the scale dropped to the floor with a loud metallic clang, there was an uproar in the crowd. Forty two voices singularly raised above the crowd, in unison calling out: "His heart is heavy with guilt, let him plead his cause to our great lady!"

The soul looked up at the goddess before it, it fell to its knees, holding its hands up to beg for mercy. The tall slim goddess was clothed in white, her skin was the softest brown, and from her back draped wings of most brilliant unearthly shades; emerald and ruby, gold and sapphire were the feathers of that goddess' wings, they lay spread across the floor behind her like a cloak of priceless gems. The soft-brown goddess looked deep into the Egyptian's soul.

"Your heart is weighed down by an unforgivable sin." She said, her words sung through the void between them, resonating through the soul of the Egyptian.

"You have taken the life of another. In anger you struck down an innocent." The lovely goddess said. The soul bowed its head, _"Mercy, my lady!"_ It cried.

The forty two gods that stood before the soul chanted in unison: "You have been found unworthy, and are denied passage to the afterlife."

In one fluid motion the goddess' massive wings swept off the floor, their brilliant colors stretched out behind the soft-brown goddess, rising up to frame her delicate form in a most forbidding aspect. "Your fate has been sealed. Bring forth the Devourer!"

From behind the chestnut goddess sprung a creature of magnificent design. Its crocodile-like mouth tore the heart of the mortal from the scales; it shook its great mane as it swallowed the heart, human blood splattering across its golden fur. The beast was massive, its cat-like body approximating the size of a Nile hippopotamus, and each of its paws had vicious claws capable of tearing through stone. The soul of the mortal let out a terror-stricken scream as it watched its heart being devoured by the magnificent creature; by the time the heart had been completely eaten, the soul had already faded away into oblivion.

The line of souls shifted. The soul of an Egyptian woman now stood before the scales.

 _"O heart that was mine, permit me not to be wronged in the presence of Ma'at."_ The soul cried out. Its heart was placed on the scales, the united voices of forty two gods rang out as one: "Speak your confessions, mortal, that ye may receive your just rewards."

 _"I have not stolen."_ The soul began…

The chestnut goddess had lowered her fabulous wings, they once more lay draped across the black-marble floors. She turned and stepped away from the circle, her sandaled feet pattering softly; her wings flowed behind her, fire-light glittered across the feathers of precious stone as she walked away from the crowd of gods and goddesses.

 _"I have not blasphemed."_ _Came the voice of the mortal soul, slightly distorted by the sounds of the crowd and largeness of the hall…_

"Scribe!" The winged goddess called out to an Egyptian-looking woman clothed in leopard skins; she was holding a rather long sheet of papyrus in one hand, and, looking up, began the long task of rolling the whole thing up and tying it with a strip of twine. "My lady Ma'at." She said respectfully to the fast approaching goddess. Ma'at stopped before the scribe, "Find my husband and tell him I must speak with him urgently." She said. The scribe had closed her eyes, her head was bowed in reverence to the goddess that spoke to her. "As my lady commands." She said, and sliding the scroll under her arm, turned to leave.

 _"I have not committed adultery."_ _The mortal soul cried out… The forty two gods chanted in unison: "You have been found worthy, and are granted passage to the afterlife."_

The chestnut goddess fidgeted with her wings while she waited, her dark features tightened with apprehension.

 _"O heart that was mine, permit me not to be wronged in the presence of Ma'at." The soul cried out. The united voices of forty two gods rang out as one: "Speak your confessions, mortal, that ye may receive your just rewards."_

Ma'at turned her head towards the massive onyx pillar she stood beside, her soft brown eyes scanned her reflection in its surface.

 _"I have not stolen."_

In the reflection on the pillar the chestnut goddess saw a strikingly handsome god standing behind her. Ma'at turned around swiftly, her glorious wings slid across the floor, silently smacking against the pillar.

"Mayet." The handsome god said, his pleasingly soft-brown eyes jumped from the goddess' bright wings to her equally pleasing soft-brown eyes. "Thoth." She said, a hint of affection in her voice.

 _"I have not blasphemed."_

"What is this matter of which you so urgently needed to speak with me?" Thoth asked.

"I saw the young goddess, Hathor, in the memory of one of the mortal souls." Ma'at said. "She was seen passing through the city ruins of Khepri ten days ago, and still traveling with the creature Anubis."

 _"I have not attacked any man."_

Thoth was nodding his head, "This is unexpected." He said, "Either this young goddess is a great deal more powerful than we anticipated, or she would appear to be working with the creature." He said. "But to what end?" Ma'at asked.

"If their course does not change, and if they maintain the same pace that we have observed, they would reach the first gate in a little under six months time." Thoth said, his graceful features looked a little more thoughtful than normal, "It is in fact possible… Anubis could be escorting Hathor to the gates — her soul has not been judged, it's quite possible that she might pass through unharmed."

 _Forty two voices chanted in unison: "You have been found worthy, and are granted passage to the afterlife."_

Ma'at's eyes searched the face of her Egyptian looking husband; his expression was always softer when he spoke with her, but at this moment even she could not miss the look of frustration written so clearly across his face. "You wish to speak with Ptah of this, don't you?" Ma'at asked him. His ever calculating eyes had been scanning the goddess' lovely face, "It does not matter what I wish, my duty lies here with you." Thoth said, "You cannot preside over all the judgements alone, it is too great a task."

 _"O heart that was mine, permit me not to be wronged in the presence of Ma'at." The soul of a young boy cried… "Speak your confessions, mortal, that ye may receive your just rewards."_

Ma'at's expression hardened at Thoth's words, "There is a goddess in peril and we stand by incapable of assisting her." She said. Thoth often had difficulty understanding her heart-driven logic. "The gates were built for a reason, Mayet." He said. She could see in his eyes that his great mind was trying to work around this problem.

"We can no longer ignore what goes on beyond the gates, Thoth." She said, "I sense a severe injustice; I cannot tell whether it is this young goddess Hathor, or the creature Anubis — but this wrong must be righted, the guilty must pay."

 _"I have not attacked any man." … There was a loud clang that sounded like a slab of bronze hitting the floor followed by an uproar in the crowd. Forty two voices singularly raised above the crowd, in unison calling out: "His heart is heavy with guilt, let him plead his cause to our great lady!"_

Ma'at stepped forward, her glorious wings spread behind her in a flash of brilliant color, but her steps were halted by Thoth's hand on her arm. He pulled her towards him a little, his gentle brown eyes were filled with concern. "I will return shortly, Mayet." He said. Ma'at's wings swung forward, wrapping around both herself and the olive-skinned god before her, their glittering jewel encrusted form hiding the two immortals from view. She stepped closer to him, placing one of her perfectly sculpted hands on his face, the deep brown shade of her skin matched almost perfectly with that of his eyes. It broke her heart to see no emotion in his eyes, no response to her touch. "I will be waiting for you." She said softly, almost a whisper. Then, stepping back, with a fluid motion of her wings she rose into the air.

Thoth gazed up at the chestnut goddess, her glittering wings carried her over the crowd at the end of the hall; she dropped down before the scales, her wings folded, and she was out of view. Thoth turned and walked away from the crowd.

The handsome god walked down the hallway. Like a great and strange enclosed city it stood, with no streets, rather one smooth glittering marble floor stretched out, reflecting the footsteps of the immortals, the voices of countless gods echoing off its smooth surface.

Beneath the mighty pillars they stood, down the marble streets they walked, through side passages, and in groups standing around the massive iron braziers. The gods of the Underworld — some human, some half way between human and the magnificent animals they so often chose to take the form of, and each and every one of them turned to bow their heads in respect of the god of wisdom as he passed them by.

" _Your heart is weighed down by an unforgivable sin." Said the lovely voice of Ma'at._

 _"Mercy, my lady!" Came the plea of the young Egyptian soul. "You have been found unworthy, and are denied passage to the afterlife."_

Thoth paused in his walk when a goddess clad in leopard skins approached him. "My lord Thoth is leaving?" She queried. "Seshat." Thoth said, "I will be gone for an indeterminate amount of time, you shall look after my affairs here for me while I am away." The olive-skinned goddess bowed her head in respect, "As my lord commands."

 _"You took a life, though it be to protect another." Ma'at's voice sang out, "Your fate has been sealed. Your soul shall forever dwell in the Duat."_

 _The forty two gods raised their voices in unison, calling out: "We honor the pact of Amunet. Your soul belongs to Apophis, lord of the Underworld. We grant you safe passage through the portal to the Duat."_

Thoth turned away from the Egyptian looking goddess, quickly making his way down the great steps leading to the docks.

"Hurry to me." Thoth said softly, his voice carried out across the river. The black waters ceaselessly sloshing up onto the smooth black stones the god stood on.

In an instant the large Hennu bark appeared before Thoth, the pale white Sokar standing upon it, his never blinking eyes stared blankly at the god. "My lord Thoth has called my name. How is it that I may serve the God of Wisdom?" The white god asked, his voice as smooth and deep as the black waters he sailed on.

"I require passage to the Overworld." Thoth said. The white god bowed his head, "As my lord commands." He said. Thoth stepped aboard the dark craft, the ship shot down the great river like an arrow, vanishing into the darkness.


End file.
